First part. The author wants to promote critical reflection that may contribute to the development of social activism. Also, he introduces links between social activism and religion. Moreover the methodology that is used in this chapter is "ethnographic". Rather than examine theoretical aspects of the religious motivation for social engagement, we look at the lives of individuals foe whom religion was a powerful driving force. He stands giving us different definitions of religion.
Second Part. Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist, was inspired to pursue nonviolent resistance by a leader outside of his own religious tradition: Mahatma Gandhi, a Hindu. As a seminary student, King was introduced to Gandhi’s satyagraha (soul force) philosophy and
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In this, Malcolm believed that embracing Islam would allow individuals to transcend what is in terms of racism and embrace what can be in terms of recasting oneself in the mode of Allah through the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. Like Dr. King, Malcolm X understood that Civil Rights had to be broached within the topic of religion in order to further its cause and move it from a political one to a moral entity. The primary difference was that Malcolm X argued that the spiritual austerity required in Islam prevented people of color, specifically African- Americans, from seeing themselves as secondary to Whites. This meant that a staunch stance of self- defense and self- assertiveness was needed for this was the representation of the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. Just as Dr. King believed that nonviolent civil disobedience moved individuals closer to Christian goodness, Malcolm X taught that assertive defense of oneself as a Muslim moves one closer to the teachings of …show more content…
Though cut short by assassin bullets, both recognized the overall importance of spirituality and religion in their causes of Civil Rights. Malcolm X broke away from the Nation of Islam, but never surrendered the idea that all human beings are one under the creative powers of Allah and Islam. Dr. King moved towards a more aggressive stance in countering racism in the North, but never lost sight of how his calling was a Christian one, an element that compelled him to tell his followers to keep persevering even if he is not present "at the mountaintop." In both thinkers, there is a profound understanding that religion was vital in ensuring that Civil Rights was a reality for African- Americans in the 1950s and
first of all a staunch endorser for the united states of Islam's teachings of Black separatism and racial superiority, Malcolm X later broke far from the company and embraced orthodox Sunni Islam sooner or later of his pilgrimage to Mecca. This transformative experience led him to reject racial essentialism and embody a extra inclusive imaginative and prescient of humanity. he started advocating for racial integration, cooperation amongst all races, and the common brotherhood of Islam. Malcolm X's ideological development reflects his adventure from radical separatism to an extra nuanced understanding of social justice and human
After he left jail, Malcolm X believed that the black man was superior to the white man and the white man was simply the devil. He preached this to thousands of black people and converted them to the Nation of Islam through his moving speeches that stunned and captivated them. However, all of his beliefs were totally changed after he took a trip to Mecca and went on Hajj.
Malcolm X was one of the primary religious leaders and reformers of the 1960, where he fought for and ultimately gave his life for racial equality in the United States. His father was a reverend who believed in self-determination and worked for the unity of black people. Throughout Malcolm’s life he was treated horribly by white people, hence shaping his misconceptions of all white people and developing his strong belief in black separatism. It wasn’t until years later where he embraced his black identity and discovered all races could live and work together for a common goal, brotherhood.
Throughout his life Malcolm X faced oppression from white people. From having his family’s house burned by the KKK, to having his father killed by a white supremacy group and leaving his mother destroyed, Malcolm had a deep sense of hatred towards white people in America. This resulted in Malcolm developing this philosophy that black people should in no way accept the help of white people. While he was in prison learning about the nation of Islam, his views on “white” America grew strong. Leading to his advocacy to Pan-Africanism. Malcolm shares in the book, “that freedom, independence and self-respect could never be achieved by the Negro in America, and that therefore the Negro should leave America to the white man and return to his African land of origin.” He simply believed that unless black people create a black nation, blacks in America could never be economically stable due to the discrimination they will continuously face. Later on in the book, he contradicts himself after his trip to Mecca and changes his views. Neglecting his past belief of Pan-Africanism, Malcolm came to the realization that blacks in America could be successful with the participation of whites fighting alongside them for equal rights. This came to be as a result of Malcolm witnessing race problems from different perspective around the
Malcolm X, an African American leader and prominent figure in the Nation of Islam, was a significant individual in the African American fight for justice and equality. In contrast to the mainstream Civil Rights Movement with its nonviolent pursuit of integration, Malcolm X voiced concepts of race pride and Black Nationalism during the 1950s and '60s. Although many argue that Malcolm X did not actually “do” anything for the black community, his nontraditional programs brought a new perspective to the Civil Rights Movement, and this perspective is of relevance today in the black community.
Malcolm X was a man who supported violence in getting equal rights for black citizens. To do this, he assisted the national Muslim leader, Elijah Muhammad by sharing the Black Muslim beliefs throughout the United States. Malcolm X started many Muslim groups and worked hard to develop racial pride in his black listeners by recognizing the suffering whites caused by blacks. With the Black Muslims, Malcolm X practiced a vigorous self-defense against white violence. He also urged blacks to live separately from whites and prevented them from attaining their freedom. He affected his followers so much that when his followers would see white people they would often harass or hurt the white people. Through his travels in the Middle East and Africa, he began to realize and change his views regarding potential brotherhood between black and white Americans and rejected the view that all whites were devils. (Harris 99) He thought that one day his religion could unite people of all races. To do this he formed his own group, The Organization of Afro-American Unity. Many people, both black and whites admired his tireless efforts to build pride in blacks and whoever shared his dreams that someday everyone would be joined in brotherhood. Malcolm X was admired by many people because of his drive to unite the blacks and whites as one, but many people also condemned his as a hypocrite and traitor because of his change in views. Malcolm X
Malcolm X was also a very great leader during the Civil Rights era. His Islamic religion helped influence how he led those who followed his teachings. He was motivated by anger that was created from white men in the past. When he was younger, his mother was threatened to move out of town because his father’s sermons were starting to cause an up roar in the community between blacks and whites. The leadership Malcolm X brought to the community was rejuvenated energy that gave young black men and women the hope to rise above the
With Black Muslim ideas as a foundation, Malcolm X would preach with great fury of the condition of blacks in America, and how the white people were held responsible. He would speak for hours on end of what he thought of the empty promises of integration and Christianity, and that the blacks need to get enraged, feel pride in their
Malcolm X was a muslim, black man who cared very much about gaining equal rights. He was, in a way, an extremist. Though only taking action when he felt necessary, when he did take action, it often had drastic effects on the people and events occurring around him. Unlike Martin Luther King or other leading civil rights activists, he did not believe in peaceful protest. He believed in “whatever means necessary” to accomplish his goals. Because of his strong efforts and his unmatched determination, Malcolm X, formally known as Malcolm Little, changed the course of the civil rights movement. If not for him, the events that played out to cause the eventual conclusion of the struggle would have been forever altered.
Throughout history there are many great people who dedicated their life to the advancement of the African American race. Few of these people created as much controversy during the 1960’s then the man who would be known as Malcolm X. Unlike many of the civil rights leaders of the time who promoted non violence, Malcolm X believed in the use of aggressive tactics in his battle for equality.
“Ignorance of eachother is what made unity impossible in the past. Therefore we need enlightenment… Light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience, and patience creates unity.”(Malcolm X, Advice to the Youth of Mississippi) Time, it seems, has a way of putting a shadow over those who were once so prominent and so demanding that they permanently etched themselves into the minds of anyone willing to lend an ear to their desperate pleas. What we as a generation do not understand is the pain and sorrow that people of other ethnicities, races, and religions have experienced throughout history. For those not willing to speak, he was their voice; the beaming light through the narrowest of cracks that continued to shine, to inspire, and to awe. For some he was Malcolm Little, for others, Malik Shabazz. To many he was simply referred to as hope. Malcolm X was a minister, a human rights activist, and political rights leader for the Nation of Islam in the mid-1900’s. Malcolm may have been a controversial character, but one aspect of this man stands true: he reinvigorated a race that had long been dormant, and reminded them that they are not powerless in the fight against racism.
Unlike King, Malcolm X encouraged his followers to rebel against whites. Malcolm X, for the most part, believed that non-violence and integration was a trick by the whites to keep African Americans oppressed. “Don’t you run around here trying to make friends with somebody who’s depriving you of your rights” (X 1964). He was furious at white racism and encouraged his followers through his speeches to rise up and protest against their white enemies. “They’re not your friends, no, they are your enemy. Treat them like that and fight them”(X 1964). He encouraged African Americans to stand up against the white America that oppressed them.
Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X were very huge leading figures during the Civil Rights movement. Though they had many differences, they had some similarities. Both men’s fathers were preachers and both men were religious preachers themselves. Dr. King and Malcolm X were around the same age and they were both assassinated. Coincidentally, both men had the same number of children and eventually they had the same ideologies for the Civil Rights Movement. However, Dr. King and Malcolm X were different in ways such as Malcolm X wanted black supremacy and Dr. King wanted equality, Malcolm X saw violence as an option to achieve his goals if peace did not work and Dr. King believed in complete nonviolence, and Malcolm X
While feminists were fighting against sexism in the 19th and 20th centuries, they were also battling other forms of oppression, as the Sojourner Truth and The Combahee River Collective point out in the readings. As early as the mid-1850s, Truth was discussing intersectionality, the crossroads of different forms of oppression. In Truth’s speech, she discussed being both African-American and a woman, a double disadvantage. More than 100 years later, The Combahee River Collective was created for the same reason—their membership in “two oppressed racial and sexual castes” that are “experienced simultaneously” (346, 349). Their membership puts them in a unique position within feminist activism—a position both Truth and Collective called to public
Political Activism can be defined as the ways in which citizens participate throough protest, demonstrating or lecture to raise awareness of issues relating to politics. Ngugi (2007), Gloudon (2005) and Blake (2014) all write about the different aspects of Political activism as seen within the continent Africa and the countries Jamaica and Venezuela respectively. These writers incorporate various strategies and styles in order to achieve their purpose of informing their audience about problems/successes associated with Political activism. The ways in which persons go about activism changes with the development of technology; however, the essence of what is being fought for should not be lost.